


Escape Artists

by alienchrist



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: 19th Century, Alternate Universe, M/M, Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-06
Updated: 2010-09-06
Packaged: 2017-10-11 13:11:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/112768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alienchrist/pseuds/alienchrist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A master magician embarks on a journey of illusion, connecting with a past that vanished years ago.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Escape Artists

**Author's Note:**

  * For [theskywasblue](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theskywasblue/gifts).



> *A million thanks to my betas, LJ users **forourlives** and **sapling**, for putting up with my last-minute panic and for serving as terrific cheerleaders.  
> *With grateful nods to _Baccano!_ and _Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box_ for inspiring the flavors of the setting.  
> *I was the last person to edit this story, all mistakes are my own.

Nii Jyianyi was one of the greatest illusionists of his time. That was what his lavish color posters promised, and that was what he truly believed. He could read it in the faces of the crowd from the moment he picked the right card to the finale with a clockwork tree that grew real oranges and produced a girl's ring in a napkin. He dazzled and amazed them in his tailed jacket and top hat. They followed the movement of his white gloves when they should have watched his assistant. They looked at his face when they should have watched his hands. Witchcraft and alchemy were not real sciences, but this true power, smelling of greasepaint and defined by the awe of children, was true magic. True influence. _Buy another ticket. Take a train to see me again. Follow me._

He had the audience spellbound. All save one.

The blond young man in the audience hadn't cracked a smile all night. Once Nii noticed that, he couldn't ignore it. Everyone else beneath the big top was entranced, munching their peanuts, their eyes wide and dazzled by the lights like farm animals. It was business as usual, typical to the point of being dull. Nii delivered all of the shock and awe his brightly-colored posters promised, and more, but Blondie barely smiled. The lad sat in a slight and sullen slouch, his hands in his lap, barely watching the show. Doves flew over his head and he didn't so much as glance upward. He looked seventeen, maybe eighteen. Nii tried to write it off as the rebellious attitude deficiencies of whippersnapper, but Blondie still got under his skin.

No wave of his bright white gloves, no tip of his silk hat, no toothy grin elicited a single reaction from Blondie. By the time the show concluded, Nii was in a fit of egotistical malaise. He cursed as he ducked out of the ring and threw off his jacket. It was saved from a mud puddle by his assistant, Gonou, an eerie young man with the best sense of timing Nii ever met.

"You did well tonight, sir," murmured Gonou. Gonou was very obedient and polite, but prone to skulking about. He was not overenthusiastic like Nii's last assistant, which Nii both liked and hated. He was as indifferent to magic as he was to everything else since the death of his sister, but that lackluster quality meant that he'd never outshine Nii. He had no aspirations or desires of his own. He would not become a competitor. More importantly, though, Gonou owed him and had no other place to go.

Nii ducked into his wagon, hanging up his top hat. After hastily lighting a lamp, he sat down in front of the mirror with cold cream. He and Gonou both wore a little eyeliner and rouge to make them more lively on stage. Take all that away and he was nothing but a smirking, bespectacled man whose dark hair could use a bit of a trim. He was handsome enough, his angular face transformed by careless grins that made people underestimate him. All part of the illusion. Nii undid his bow tie, unbuttoning his shirt at its stiff throat.

After hanging the jacket, putting away the props and lighting a few more lamps, Gonou sat beside him and began removing his stage face as well. The rouge that gave him color slowly came off, making his sallow cheeks all the more unnerving. Most nights Nii didn't bother engaging in conversation with the taciturn boy, but today he had an inquiry to make. "Did you happen to notice a lad about your age mocking me in the audience?"

"I didn't see anyone like that. Everyone seemed quite entertained by the performance. Especially the finale. You're right, the fresh oranges really do add a lot of nuance to it." Gonou spoke with hardly any inflection, leaning forward to concentrate on a particularly stubborn bit of eyeliner.

"I'm not surprised you didn't see it," said Nii, examining a bit of stubble on his cheek. "Limited depth perception and all." He grinned at the delivery of the punch, but didn't even bother glancing over to see Gonou's reaction.

Gonou kept his peace, his face blank save the green and white glint of his glass eye. Most of the circus was frightened of the man, and with good cause. He and his twin sister Kanan traveled with the caravan since they were quite young, matching each others moves in a juggling act. The fortune teller, a slimy man by the name of Yisou, took a special liking to Kanan. As she blossomed into womanhood, he decided to help her blossom a little bit further. Nii had no idea what Yisou saw in her. Kanan was a vapid girl, always smiling and laughing but never showing much beneath. She loved her Bible and pretty flowers, she loved her brother best of all. Yawn.

The day after Yisou ravaged Kanan, her eyes were blank as a soldier's, ready for amputation. She was dead inside, but still somehow afraid when she told her brother of the crime. For the first time ever, Nii found her interesting.

Nii watched their little drama unfold from a comfortable distance, at the edge of the little glen the circus parked their wagons. Gonou's voice rose a little, and she took off running. She bolted quickly from Gonou's reach and he gave chase. Nii made no attempt to stop her as she ran past, headed for the edge of a rocky ravine nearby. She didn't pause long enough to hear her brother calling. Instead, she threw herself off and away.

Beautiful. The sight inspired Nii to invent a levitation trick, later.

Recovering her broken body took the better part of a day, especially since several in the circus had gone into the local town for supplies. Even when they brought back the girl's broken, mangled corpse, Gonou's face remained drawn and expressionless. Then darkness fell all at once.

Gonou found a knife and marched back to the little ring of wagons, dragging Yisou out like a thing possessed. He proceeded to gut the man in front of the camp fire, but not before a terrific struggle on Yisou's part. He was youkai, after all, and stronger, but Gonou's rage never flagged. Stabbed in one eye and bleeding from a gunshot in the belly, the juggler just wouldn't stay down. In the end, Gonou sliced Yisou into pieces with the frightful precision of a man gone mad. As Yisou gurgled out his last, Gonou stood over him with a familiar, dead expression, then collapsed atop him. That was how the lion tamer and strong man found them shortly after.

No one at the circus was keen to have the police involved, and taking Gonou to a hospital would have exposed their little drama. Before they could reach a verdict on the young man's fate, Nii stepped in. He offered responsibility for the boy and nursed him back to health, out of curiosity more than anything else. He hadn't stitched anyone up since the war and wanted to see if he was still able. Aside from the unsalvageable right eye, Gonou made a complete recovery. Nii offered Gonou a job as his assistant.

The decision made him unpopular with the other circus performers. Nii sometimes saw the lion tamer and strong man muttering and glancing in his direction before the tight rope girl broke them up. It might have been just the typical mistrust youkai held for humans - understandable after the war - but Nii could tell from their body language that they also disliked him.

Nii crafted Gonou a new eye. He was good at imitations of life, at things too good to be true. It was all part of winning an audience over. This was his finale in the show to convince Gonou. The lad was one of those born skeptics, the type who was not only able to see through Nii's illusions, but through his act of humanity, as well. It made sense to win Gonou to his side, or at least put him in debt. And he'd needed a new assistant since the old one struck out on his own. Gonou was always perfectly amicable, calm and levelheaded and good at following instructions - not to mention he was handy with a needle and thread, and over the cooking fire. From a distance, there was no way the audience could tell he was mad as a March hare. The arrangement worked well.

Nii and Gonou sat silent in the wagon for a few minutes before there was a knock on the door. Gonou rose to get it. Nii watched him. If it was some admiring young fawn, Gonou would depart and Nii could show off his tricks. He leaned back in his chair to see around Gonou.

It was the blond lad from earlier in the night. Perhaps his iciness earlier was just an act, a coy way to cover his true admiration. Nii wasn't approached by men as often as he was by women, but he'd always consent to a conversation with an admirer. Gonou allowed the boy in and excused himself quietly.

Blondie had a handsome face that opposed his severe expression. He was dressed in machine-spun cloth, likely the son of a shopkeeper or a banker. He carried himself like someone who'd been to academy, like the clean wood floor of Nii's wagon was covered with muck he'd never get off his shoes. His eyes were violet as sunset, striking even in the flickering lamplight. He purveyed every item in the wagon, the cages of birds and rabbits. His frown was immobile. Just as Nii was about to tell him to either explain what he wanted or get out, the young man spoke.

"You're reputedly the best illusionist of the decade," he said. "I wasn't very impressed, but, sometimes the name's more important than the performance, anyway."

"Name me someone who's better."

Blondie ignored him. "I heard you and your assistant were leaving this dump pretty soon."

"We'll be touring on our own. We've been booked in the big city."

"That's how I heard of you. Look. It doesn't make me happy to say this--" --Nii wondered if anything ever made this kid happy-- "But I need you. Your creepy assistant I can take or leave, but I need an escape artist."

"If you really knew me you'd know I don't deal in escape. I deal in illusions." It wasn't that Nii didn't see the appeal of risk-taking, it was just rather pedestrian in the effort it took to impress. Why put his life in danger by performing actual tasks that were somewhat difficult when he could use a few mirrors, some trap doors and secret pockets, and the occasional clockwork orange tree to produce the same reaction?

"If I really knew you, I'd have killed you for spite by now," Blondie snorted. "I knew this was a waste of time. I should've just asked that other magician - the one who calls himself the God of Magic -"

"Kami," Nii scoffed the name of his old assistant. He'd always thought the boy so trusting and obedient. But Kami decided the best way to show his teacher his appreciation was to strike out on his own, purloining all of Nii's best-kept secrets. It was a joke, really, the idea that anyone could surpass simply through copying.

"- Or even that nut-job the Great Zakuro. I'm sure once either of them would at least listen to my offer before he started putting on airs."

"Neither of them have much reason to put on airs, but if you're willing to settle for either of them, then I'm insulted you even considered me. You obviously don't care what kind of show gets put on."

"I don't have time for this crap. You wrote this, didn't you?" Blondie thrust an old paper under Nii's nose, filled with scratchy, chaotic script. "You're Ken'yuu."

Nii recognized it as his own hand, though he hadn't written a letter in many years. Checking the date, it was one he wrote during the war.

A wave of dizziness washed over Nii. The wagon was a matchbox, a coffin, and he couldn't stand it any longer. He wanted out. He wanted a cigarette. But if he left now, Blondie would know something was eating at him. Nii didn't let on, but the kid seemed to know somehow. He didn't crack a smile of triumph, but Nii almost wished he would. Nii folded the letter back to its original form, but it was old, yellowed, creased. Sealing it up again wouldn't hide its secrets.

"How'd you get this?" Nii spoke through the angry teeth of his fake smile. This was not something anyone was supposed to have seen.

"Found it in my old man's things with all the rest."

"Your old man?" The idea of the letter's recipient being a parent made Nii's lip curl. During the war, he wrote to a famous magician, Koumyou Sanzo, as sort of a whim. The craft interested him. He was quite surprised when the magician wrote him back. What followed was a few years of happy correspondence. Nii and Koumyou never talked about the war, but instead had long, philosophical debates about audience, storytelling and perception. Those letters were the only moments of light in those bloody, muddy times, and when Nii finally grew fed up with uphill struggles, there was part of him that regretted changing his name and severing ties. He entered the world of illusionists hoping to find Koumyou, only to hear the man retired long ago. No one had heard from him for years. Bearing all that in mind, it wasn't so strange that Koumyou might have had a family and lived a normal life, but Nii found the prospect inexplicably depressing. Married people were always so boring. "He never mentioned a son in his letters." _Or a wife._

"There's a lot he didn't mention. He probably figured it'd bore you. He never told me about your correspondence, either." That obviously bothered Genjyo, which pleased Nii.

"So why'd you track me down? You found out about me when you snooped through your pop's things and the curiosity was impossible to take? What's your old man up to these days?" Nii had a feeling he knew, but couldn't resist asking anyway for the potential change in Genjyo's face.

Just as he hoped, the lad's jaw tightened, his violet eyes narrowed sharply. "A copious dirt nap."

"Damn. I'm sorry to hear that." Nii couldn't give less of a hoot about whether or not this Genjyo brat lost his pa, but he genuinely regretted he'd never speak with Koumyou. He'd always wondered what the man was like. He'd even asked for a photograph of the man, once, though Koumyou dismissed the request in his reply, saying an old man like him didn't hold with such new-fangled technology. That being said, had Ken'yuu ever had his picture taken? Nii sent along a small portrait, excusing it by pointing out it was taken when he was just a child in school. Koumyou thanked him in the next letter. Nii's reply to that was the last letter he ever sent.

Nii waited many months for a reply, but it never came. Of course it hadn't. Bad luck and disappointment followed Nii like a flock of ravens, ready to pick apart the slightest good fortune. He saw it time and again. He completed school and became a physician at a ridiculously young age, but his parents barely paused from their galas to congratulate him. He became a valued military doctor, then got caught up in that blasted war. He hadn't half the resources he needed to give proper care and people kept dying the same pathetic way over and over. After all that, he found a friend, his first and only one, and the man stopped writing. Nii couldn't find him again. All attempts to replace him with another kind of connection failed.

"He wrote you back." Looking sour, Genjyo handed Nii a letter penned in that familiar, flighty handwriting. "I guess your company was on the move a lot back then. It was returned, and he tried a few more times to send it out, but it just kept getting returned. Dunno how long it took him to find out that you deserted."

Nii wanted nothing more than to kick that sullen, pinched-faced brat of a teenager out of his wagon so he could read the letter privately, but his impatience won out over his perpetual desire to argue. To think he could learn Koumyou's reply nearly a decade after the fact! It was more delicious than the delight that washed over an audience's face when he turned a hat full of milk and eggs into doves, or a rabbit.

_I am actually planning to retire and focus on teaching the trade to my son,_ Koumyou wrote, _But of course, performing with you would be a delight! Even if you know no magic, you could be the plant in the crowd or something equally amusing. Consider it something to look forward to after the war!_

"So what does all of this have to do with you, boy?" Nii finally said, folding up the letter and placing it inside his vest. Genjyo glanced up listlessly feeding one of Nii's rabbits a piece of lettuce.

"The old man and I were working for this dowager in Houtou. She really likes magic, but her taste's gone to escape artists lately. Her birthday's coming up. She wants a magic show like my pa used to throw. Truth be told, I've lost the taste for doing magic of any kind. So I figured I'd go with the next best thing."

"I really don't see any reason why I should do you a favor," Nii said snidely. He thought it would be a nice blow to Genjyo's hopes after he put forth the effort of finding a strange deserter from his father's past, but the lad only shrugged.

"Because you said you wanted to do a show with him, and you didn't get a chance. I thought it'd make him happy if I at least tried to get you."

"How'd you know it was me? I changed my name and all."

"--Which is hare-brained, if you think about it, because someone's gonna connect you to Ken'yuu one of these days--"

"Your concern touches me in so many ways," Nii interrupted, "Now answer."

"Your photo. He kept it in a locket. Found it on him when he died."

A quick, fierce jealousy overtook Nii's senses. He thought he would have much preferred to have been the one to dress Koumyou's body when he died, even if they never met. It felt like Genjyo was prying, even if he was the magician's miserable offspring.

"Well, I'm not doing it."

"Thanks for wasting my time, then." Frowning intensely, Genjyo gave one of the bunnies one last pat on the head and crossed the wagon in a single step. He paused on the step down, in the doorway. "If you change your mind, that train out to the big city carries on to Houtou. You could change your tickets. We didn't even discuss how much this party'd pay you. If the lady of the house likes you, she'll not only pay handsomely, but with all kinds of presents, too. She really coddles the people she likes."

"I am not going to change my mind. I'm already sick of your face, so pull foot already."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Genjyo grunted and turned away.

"Wait -- how'd your pa die, anyway?"

"He was strolling around town one evening and intervened on some youkai hooligans beating an old man. They clawed him in the belly a few times and that was it. There wasn't even time to get him to the doctor."

"Get out," Nii demanded. "I told you I was sick of your face."

"I told you I was leaving, you sonnovabitch."

Genjyo left, and Nii sat staring at the two letters for quite some time. Gonou quietly let himself back into the wagon and settled back in to work on some sewing. It was only a moment later that Nii's thought caught up to the moment. He stood up all at once.

"He went out like a sucker! What a damn disappointment!"

"I beg your pardon?" Gonou looked up from the garment he was mending.

"I was talking to the rabbits."

Gonou shrugged and went back to sewing.

~*~

Nii never did understand what all the fuss was about trains. They were noisy and smelled of soot. All the varnish in the world couldn't make make them less like a steel and wood death trap. The first time Nii rode one in his youth, he'd been passably amused by the feat of modern engineering. Now, though, he was bored of them, quickly descending further into the black mood that plagued him since learning of Koumyou's death. Gonou and he couldn't afford a private box, which meant they had the golden opportunity to sit up all night and listen to women in tall hats prattle about their upcoming holiday. Of course, it was still a faster option, safer and smoother than taking a coach or one's own wagon, and they'd arrive with plenty of time to set up and rehearse the magic show on the grand stage. Though the train was speeding toward his big break, Nii remained in poor spirit. He didn't even mind Gonou taking the window seat so he could watch the scenery.

On the second day of the trip, the weather was cool and gloomy, so the observation car at the end of the train was empty. The observation car felt more spacious than the regular passenger car, with only a few benches to sit on and enjoy the scenery out of large windows. It opened onto an exposed deck, the rounded off end half of the train that was fashioned a bit like a gazebo or the riding area of a fancy ferry. The floors were polished wood, the metal walls painted a deep blue. There were places to sit in the open air, though the wind and sound of the train made it noisy, and the infirm weather made it cold. At least it was private. The wind whipped about, and Nii tugged up the collar of his plain wool jacket. Green trees and high-backed mountains blurred by. Nii reached into his inner pocket and pulled out the letter he'd read every day since receiving it. Koumyou sounded so carefree in that lost letter. He spoke a little about his son, the boy he'd adopted after he found him in the rushes like Moses, and discussed his growing interest in escape arts.

_It's like a game_, Koumyou wrote. _A game of chance and skill, but mostly ingenuity. Even more exhilarating is the possibility of combining the two. It wouldn't work more than once or twice, though, but imagine an audience's reaction when they find the magician they thought had died to be alive and well in some other location. A satisfying play indeed._

Nii could think of a few satisfying plays he'd like, too, come to think of it. Maybe with that smart-mouthed son of Koumyou's. Kid ought to be taught an object lesson in respect.

If he was thinking like that, all resentful-like of some stranger's connection to a magician he'd never met, obviously it'd been too long since his last tumble. Nii considered his options. Gonou was out of the question, unless he wanted to wake up with knitting needles in his eye or his long underwear strangling his throat in the morning. Maybe he ought to mosey to the dining car, see if there were any ladies traveling alone for the duration. A train wasn't the most private place, even if he found a lady traveling alone with a private box, but the pursuit at least would detract from the blackness.

A birdlike flutter distracted Nii's trail of thought. He looked up to see a tall man entering the observation deck, his silk robes dancing in the wind. The wind buffeting the car tore the letter from Nii's fingers and carried it away. Nii jumped to his feet to reach for it, but it was too late. He watched dumbfounded as the letter did several acrobatic loops before landing in a thicket of trees far behind them. It was soon gone from sight like so much rail track.

Nii glared at the intruder, out of principle more than truly blaming him. The man was dressed in a long gray robe, silk, high in the collar, with thick white cuffs. Nii recognized it as a fashion popular in more traditional parts of the East - a chang pao. The man wore a round, flat-topped hat of black silk. Beneath the hat his hair was pale and long, gathered into a braid the wind was already pulling stray wisps from. His face was narrow, with high cheekbones, and the gentle lines around his eyes and face suggested a man entering his middle years. He purveyed the observation car with squinted eyes. When his gaze settled over Nii, he smiled. The rattling of the car, noise of the engine and gritty smell of coal were distant, and the clouds of the day gave way to reluctant sunlight.

"May I sit out here awhile?" asked the stranger.

Nii didn't even bother to adjust his posture. In fact, he stretched and slouched a little further, long legs with threadbare trousers and scuffed loafers crossed at the ankles. He took up twice the space he needed to.

"You don't need my permission," Nii shrugged. "You paid for the ticket, right?"

There was a fine enough seat on the other side of the platform, but instead, the braid-wearing man sat up on the railing next to Nii. Nii briefly imagined what the scene would be if he fell. His body would twist, all wrapped up in the silk like a spring roll. Maybe his hair would catch on the bumper or in the wheels of the train, and tear his whole, frail-looking body hither and yon. Nii returned the strange man's smile, imagining that.

"Everyone pays for their ticket, Mr. Nii." The peaceful smile grew amused and sly.

"How'd you know my name?" A fan of his work, Nii assumed, though he was sure he'd remember someone dressed in such a manner. He was sure he'd remember this man in particular.

"You dropped your ticket in the dining car." The stranger reached into his sleeve, producing the ticket with Nii's name written on it. "Your traveling companion seemed occupied, so I thought I'd return your ticket in person. Naturally, you were in the last place I looked." A lighthearted laugh. "I should have looked in the last place first!"

Nii took the ticket, slipping it into the inner pocket of his vest. He leaned forward, trying to gaze into the older man's eyes. "It seems I'm at a disadvantage. You know my name, but I don't know yours."

"My name?" As if the idea of introducing himself hadn't occurred to the man. He paused a moment, then a smile broke out on his face anew. "It's Soma."

"Nice to meet you, Soma."

The observation platform gave a perilous tremble and shake, and Soma braced one foot to Nii's chair, steadying himself with a bridge between them. Soma wore black slippers embroidered with a gold pattern of a daisy on strange, slender fronds. Nii ran his fingers over the pattern, and then up over the little jut of Soma's ankle bone. Soma neither resisted nor commented, just watched Nii with an expression of mild curiosity. Annoyed at the lack of reaction, Nii slid his hand upward further. Soma's calf was smooth as a woman's, but Nii's found in his journey upward that the loosely-fitting garment Soma wore was hiding a muscled form. Exposed to the air and the coolness of Nii's fingertips, Soma's skin grew little goosebumps. Nii inched further and further, and while Soma's expression never changed, his cheeks grew slightly pinker. Nii drew warmth from the excitement of touch alone, and soon his hand no longer raised goosebumps on Soma's skin.

Slowly, Nii's hand disappeared nearly all the way up Soma's robe. He came to rest on Soma's outer thigh for a long moment. Nii felt and saw Soma draw in a sharp breath, inaudible beneath the sounds of the train. After giving Soma's thigh a long squeeze, Nii pulled his hand away along that same slow and agonizing path. He wished Soma's gray silk fell a little differently, hung a little tighter. He was certain he'd see at least a slight bulge emerging from his flirtatious physical statement. His own trousers felt a little tight.

Nii stood, placing his hands on Soma's shoulders. "Don't you think this is a dangerous place to sit?" he said. "I could push you right off the train if I wanted. It's not likely you'd survive the fall."

Little bursts of sunlight kept darting through cloud breaks and high trees to illuminate Soma's hair. The shade of ash blond took on a honey gleam, scattered gray hairs shining like strands of silver. His skin was almost translucent, this close, but Nii felt that Soma was anything but fragile. He might wear dainty, fluttering things, but the body beneath was a fine steel trap, precise and delicately tense. Yet it rippled like small brook when Soma laughed.

"Are you saying you want to murder me? That's quite a bold statement for our first meeting. I wouldn't commit to such strong sentiments so soon."

Nii forced a laugh. It took a moment for him to loosen his grip on Soma's shoulders. He rested them instead at Soma's hips, in the small space between his hands and body. He was relieved, somehow, that Soma didn't cower or even widen his eyes. If he'd done those things, Nii was certain he would've thrown him from the train without a second thought.

(This journey was already punishing him with ennui. Let it not disappoint him with a lackluster companion.)

"I was joking."

"Oh," said Soma. "You were?" This close, Nii could see his eyes were hazel. He wondered why Soma didn't just wear spectacles if his vision was so poor he needed to squint like that all the time.

"Of course. Who'd throw a complete stranger from a train?"

"The same person who'd molest a complete stranger on a train, I imagine!" Soma said. He said it like teasing, like they old friends or old lovers, just joking around and sharing a quiet, private moment, hidden under the racket of the train and the dull roar of the wind.

"That person would have to have awful manners." To prove his bad manners, Nii pressed his lips to Soma's jugular. And then down, and down. As he pushed his body against Soma's, it became all too clear just how little space the older man had on the railing. He was all but dangling over the edge.

"Stop that nonsense!" Soma tapped the side of Nii's head with his knuckles until he stopped. Nii paused, wondering dizzily if he'd genuinely offended the man, if his first thoughts of violence were the right ones. "Your whiskers are awfully scratchy!" Soma huffed, bringing to Nii's mind the face of one of his doves when it was annoyed or offended.

"You're really not worried!" Nii thought aloud, his voice rising with manic energy. At this rate he might start laughing, a full on belly laugh that wouldn't stop until the tears came. "I could have pushed you right off, and you're not the least bit worried!"

"I don't have any cause to worry," Soma reasoned. He gently pushed at Nii's chest until the man stepped aside, and hopped off the railing. "If you killed me now you'd never reach your destination! Besides, you're a magician, right? I wanted to show you a little trick of mine."

So Soma was a fan after all. Nii was crestfallen, though he couldn't have said why. "Great," he said, not bothering to disguise his sarcasm.

"I wouldn't call it great, but it is pretty interesting!" Soma remarked. He gave a simple but gracious bow, and pulled a letter from his U-shaped sleeve.

"That wasn't a very good trick at all," Nii grumbled, "You just had it in your sleeve the whole time."

"I've never been too flashy," Soma said apologetically. "Well. Have a nice trip, I suppose!"

Before Nii could say more, Soma disappeared through the doorway. Nii followed, but was delayed by two women and their ridiculous bustles. By the time he made it back into the car, Soma was nowhere in sight.

The train didn't make another stop until the late evening. There was no way Soma could hide from him forever. It would be a diversion for the next few days, at least, so Nii resolved to take his time solving the riddle that was Soma. And bed him, since it seemed likely the man had a private box. Satisfied with his conclusion, Nii examined the prop Soma gave him.

It was Koumyou's letter - identical down to the smudged ink and the faint smell of a cedar drawer. Even the creases were in the same place. Different, though, was the vanilla-soft scent of a fancy tobacco and a hint of almond oil. Nii pressed the letter to his nose and recalled those scents in Soma's skin and hair, faint beneath the loud smells of coal and the forest winds whipping by.

"Well, I'll be damned," Nii said, and tucked the letter back into his vest. No sense in risking losing the letter again.

As he entered the passenger car, Nii was stopped by a short lad in a white uniform, his brown hair messy beneath his matching hat. He recalled having seen him help load the luggage at the station, and shoveling down his dinner in the dining car in the wee hours. Now the porter grinned up at Nii. "Ticket, please!"

"I boarded this train yesterday. You saw my ticket then." A half-truth. Gonou showed their tickets to some other attendant as they got on.

"No sir, I didn't. I gotta check tickets now and then, y'know, just to make sure no one's riding for free!" The kid was practically bouncing with enthusiasm, like a spaniel just happy to have a job to do. Probably his first job. Judging by his gold eyes, it might've been one of the better ones he could get. The kid looked youkai.

"Fine," Nii groused, and pulled the ticket from his pocket. The porter grabbed it with both hands and studied it with a frown of concentration. "What, can't you read?" Nii had a way of sneering while he smiled. He expected resentment for the shot at the kid's reading level, a sore spot when most youkai were lucky to receive past a second grade education.

Instead, Goldie met him with a wide and clueless gaze. "Um, sir. Why are you even at this end of the train? Your box is toward the back, ain't it?"

"My box?" Nii snatched the ticket back.

_Nii Jyianyi_, the ticket read, _BOX A. CHANG'AN TO HOUTOU._

"Do you need me to show you back there?" asked Goldie, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"No," Nii said, unable to suppress his giggle. "I can find my way."

"Of course, sir. Have a nice afternoon." Goldie edged away, blinking at the laughter Nii didn't even bother to hide. Nii laughed long and hard, until his sides ached. He was still laughing when he made it into the empty luxury box.

A satisfying play indeed!

~*~

Nii was disappointed to find the box empty when he arrived. It was much the same as the other luxury boxes he'd seen. The room echoed the landscape outside, with green velvet and polished wood, and little bursts of shining gold in the brass fixtures. There was a large bed to one side, behind half a dividing wall, and a table furnished with cushioned benches next to a large picture window. At first glance, there were no signs of life. But Nii was an educated man, detail-oriented, and a thorough examination garnered irrefutable evidence: a very long hair underneath one pillow. It was exactly Soma's shade.

He wrapped the strand around his wrist and between his fingers like a secret talisman, and waited for the mysterious man's arrival, re-reading Koumyou's letter. He was beginning to understand what had been pulled off. Was it merely a performance, or was there some deeper motivation? If Koumyou still lived and wanted Nii to perform for Gyokumen, why not make the request personally? It would have saved his sullen, sorry excuse for a son the trouble. Then again, the possibility stood that Soma was only an assistant or a plant, coincidentally Koumyou's age.

Nii sprawled out on the bench, stretching his legs along the cushion. After all, the ticket said this car was his now. He stared out the window. The cool glens and high trees were already starting to bore him. He wanted more of Soma. He raised his wrist to his cheek, smoothing his hair-bracelet against the stubble of his cheek. The strand was strong and clean, like the sinew used to string violins, or the wires he used in his act for levitation. But when Nii hooked his finger into the loop, it snapped and broke easily.

A gentle knock on the door startled his reverie. It was the short, golden-eyed porter again. He pushed a small cart with several bamboo steam plates and a shiny pot of tea. "Food's here!" Goldie called into the room, and then glanced around. "Right, it's you," he said, staring at Nii. "Uh. You hungry?" Before Nii could answer, he started setting out the plates.

There were fresh dumplings, stuffed banana leaves, and a variety of jewel-bright steamed vegetables. The smell made Nii's mouth water. He swallowed and spoke from the corner of his mouth. "Who did you expect to see in this car?"

"I get the cars mixed up all the time. I just hope I took the order to the right one..."

Nii snorted. The boy was quick and graceful despite what he said, and the food was all arranged and a cup of tea poured for Nii in very short order. He stood looking at Nii expectantly for a moment.

Nii stared right back at him.

"Mister, it's usually customary to give a tip."

"And it's usually customary for me not to tip for anything but favors," Nii sneered. "So unless you wanna get on your knees--"

"Never mind, sir, I betcha they need me in the kitchen!"

Goldie beat a hasty retreat. Nii folded up his legs, sliding to sit correctly on the bench and address his tea and snacks. A warm laugh lit the luxury box.

Soma sat down across from him, pouring himself his own cup of tea. Nii re-lived the last few minutes in his head, and couldn't place when Soma might have made it in. Even with the porter distracting him, his gaze was trained right in the direction of the door. Nii knew it was impossible that Soma had appeared from thin air, but the trick was quite streamlined. He couldn't be sure whether he was annoyed or intrigued.

Without saying another word to each other, they drank their tea and began to eat as if they'd always shared these seats. The first break in silence happened a few minutes in, when Nii offered Soma some spare rib.

"No thank you," said Soma with a little wave of his hand. "I don't eat meat."

"Religious reasons? Health reasons?" It was rare to meet someone aside from bald, humorless monks who didn't eat meat. Most Buddhists were not so devout these days.

"Yes," said Soma. "Are you going to eat that steamed broccoli?"

"Help yourself," Nii said, setting down the plate with a flourish.

Soma laughed and partook.

In the moments of silence after the meal, Soma pulled a pipe and tobacco from his sleeve. He packed the pipe with ritual care and skill, lighting it with a match. Nii was fascinated by Soma's lips as he lightly closed them around the end of the pipe, and the fine white tendrils that curled past them when he pulled away and offered Nii a puff. From its spicy notes and hints of vanilla, Nii judged it to be a fine tobacco - the scent that clung to Soma's hair and the letter he gave Nii.

"How do you like it?" Soma asked.

"It's very good," Nii said, taking one final puff before handing the pipe back. "But I think the smoke must be much sweeter from your lips."

Without awaiting reply, Nii leaned across the table to test his theory. He kissed Soma, open-mouthed and hungry. For a moment Soma was rooted to his seat, then he returned the kiss, pressing that smokey taste (and the taste of tea and vegetables) into Nii's mouth. The gentlest sweep of Soma's tongue across the line of his teeth sucked the air from Nii's lungs. He had to pull back far too soon and stared at Soma dumbfounded.

The older man smiled at him, hazel peeking through his long, pale lashes. Free from the hat he wore earlier in the day, his pale bangs rested long across his cheeks.

"My," Soma breathed, "But you are forward."

"You changed out my ticket so we could meet here," Nii pointed out, "So who's forward?"

"It's really no fun when the man from the audience points out how the trick really works," Soma pouted. "You were doing such a good job with playing along, even that line about the smoke!"

Nii stared at Soma a moment more, then sat back down across the table. Was Soma teasing, or was he not being let in on the joke? Not enough information to say for certain, yet. "I wasn't playing," he said, reaching under the table to grasp Soma's knee. "I want to screw you."

"Screw me? I'd never do such a vulgar thing." Soma was put-upon, positively indignant, and, Nii suspected, completely joking.

"Screw you, ravish you, lie with you - whatever you like. I want you."

"We're not nearly to the point where I can lie with you," Soma chuckled, "But I might lie beside you. Would that suffice?"

"I won't believe you're so old you can't take part," Nii scoffed. His hand slid further in. Soma stopped him with a firm hand, slowly lifting it from the silk of his robe entirely until Nii withdrew.

"After the finale, everyone in the audience goes home. If you end the show too soon, they'll never be satisfied."

Inside his head, Nii was cussing, mad as a polecat. But he smiled, determined to win Soma over. "I'll lie beside you, then."

Soma nodded, slipping from the booth and offering a willowy hand up. They were kissing before Nii even stood up. Nothing about Soma seemed old, nothing about him seemed reserved or tidy, let alone conservative or spiritual. He was just as hungry as Nii was, gentle but pulling and pushing with the same force. His hands were everywhere at once, tugging at Nii's scraggly dark hair, rubbing thumbs over the nape of his neck or the small of his back, squeezing his hips. Nii threw him down on the bed, but when he aimed to crawl on top of the slender man, Soma just rolled away with a laugh.

"I said beside, not atop!"

"Right," Nii growled, stretching out onto his side next to Soma, who rested on his back. After a moment he slipped a hand over the back of Soma's neck and pulled him close for more kissing. Soma acquiesced, but his kisses were cooler and slower this time. Soma cupped his chin and pushed him back, pressing a kiss over Nii's stubbled jaw, and then his ear.

"I swear I've never met such a randy man, certainly not right off," Soma whispered, then withdrew completely.

"I swear you've never met a man," Nii complained, but he did not try to kiss Soma again. Soma rolled onto his back, and Nii did the same. The bed was large enough for them side-by-side, but they couldn't manage it without touching. Nii felt Soma's shoulder pressed against his and could feel his breath. His entire body burned with temptation. His dick was quite hard, and now his balls were beginning to ache. It wouldn't be much work to force Soma to relieve it, he thought. He could barely stand to even glance at the older man, thinking like that. Thinking he might go off.

They listened to the rhythmic clatter of the train across the rails for what might have been a very long time. Soma traced his fingers over the back of Nii's hand, then between his fingers, the gap between his thumb and forefinger. He rubbed over Nii's palm. Tickled, Nii's fingers curled. Soma wove their fingers together, resting his palm near Nii's knuckles.

Nii breathed slowly and quietly, afraid if he did anything else, the moment would end. He thought of how that hand had carefully pushed his attempt to grope away before, and decided that Soma would probably be too much trouble to try and force. Besides, he'd never been so desperate as to even consider it before. He certainly couldn't admit Soma made him lose that much composure.

Soma spoke quietly. "How many people do you think are on this train?"

Nii traced the ceiling with his gaze, its slightly curved shape and the way the moving scenery threw cool gray light and occasional sunbursts across in flickering shapes. "A few hundred. It's just the beginning of the summer, soon enough they'll all be filled to bursting with wide-eyed tourists, just waiting to be dazzled."

Soma chuckled. "Do you really want me?"

"Do you really think you can fool me into believing we're strangers?"

"I thought everyone dreamed of meeting strangers on the train," Soma said lightly.

"It's not exactly believable after you gave me your copy of the letter," Nii pointed out.

Pause. Both still stared at the ceiling, joined only by their hands. "No, I suppose not."

Abruptly, Nii turned to his companion. "Koumyou--"

"Shh." Soma - no, Koumyou - pressed his fingertip to Nii's lips. He pressed his free hand flat to Nii's chest and gave him a small push. Stunned, Nii lay back again.

Koumyou squeezed his hand, and slowly guided up upward between them. Nii let his fingers go slack. It almost felt like someone else touching him, gently brushing fingers over his thigh, coming to rest as a passive weight against the flagging bulge in his trousers. Nii felt Koumyou's breath quicken, but a stolen glance to the corner of his eye showed Koumyou's gaze was still trained on the ceiling, even as he urged Nii's fingers over his own buttons.

With Koumyou's hand still guiding, Nii unbuttoned his trousers and drew out his penis. Koumyou's fingers moved to brace his wrist, giving Nii free reign to wrap his hot, trembling fingers around himself. He would have wanked himself to quick hardness, but the grip Koumyou kept on his wrist limited his movement. Made him go almost painfully slow. Just stroking like that, Nii could barely breathe. Every time he was sure he might come in writhing frustration, Koumyou would urge his wrist a little further upward or downward, letting Nii squeeze his balls or rub over his tip.

He never thought he could go all ragged and red-faced from a little masturbation, but there he was. After what felt like hours of his torture he could no longer quell the bucking of his hips, the desperation for a faster, firmer friction. "Koumyou, Hell--"

All at once it was Koumyou touching him, squeezing him. It was Koumyou pulling him over so they could face one another, kissing, and Nii could do nothing more than finish, groaning into Koumyou's mouth as he spurted into soft, cool silk. He lay panting and wide-eyed as Koumyou squeezed the silk around him, cleaned up his soft, sticky prick. He raised the handkerchief, waving it like a white flag in a parody of a magic trick, disappearing it back into a hidden pocket at his hip.

There was nothing Nii could think of to say about this, so he promptly gave up on getting smart and instead placed a hand on Koumyou, felt his rigidity through the silk of his robe. He rubbed his thigh between Koumyou's legs, pulling a soft moan from the older man that matched the slide of silk and flesh between them. But again Koumyou stopped him, pushed him back.

"I want to show you how to be invisible," Koumyou said in a shaken voice. He pulled Nii's glasses from his face, and perched them on his own nose. Then he pulled a red handkerchief from his pocket and tied it over Nii's eyes quite firmly and snugly. He tucked himself closely against the younger man, back to his chest.

"You can't touch what's invisible," Koumyou breathed. Nii denied him, but only by squeezing his hands over Koumyou's hips. Through the noise of the train, he almost couldn't hear Koumyou slipping his hands under his robes or the slap of his fingers against his hardness. But he could feel and hear how Koumyou gasped with more and more ragged abandon. Especially with his face pressed to his neck, just like that.

Koumyou cried out, his voice swallowed by the train whistle. As he lay against Nii, slack and exhausted, Nii kissed the nape of his neck, the space just below his ear.

"Now who's being forward? Now who's randy?"

Koumyou laughed, sounding happy and sated. He turned around, pulled the blindfold from Nii's face, and kissed him. Somehow, he managed to look not the least bit mussed or sweaty. It was unfair, considering what a mess Nii was. And he was at least ten years younger!

"Now lie beside me and sleep," he said. He pressed a kiss to Nii's nose. "Or I'll have to hypnotize you."

"You already did that," Nii pointed out, rolling back onto his back and closing his eyes.

A laugh. "Maybe I did."

Nii closed his eyes. "Didn't you? I've never felt as if I wanted to listen to someone."

Koumyou just raised an eyebrow. "You want to listen to me? I'll need to find something interesting to say."

Nii wanted to say more. He wanted to tell Koumyou he was contrite, that there was never anyone who could make him restrain himself in thirty-five years, but sleep pulled at him like undertow. Nii closed heavy eyes, welcomed into the dream world by the warmth of Koumyou's gentle laughter.

~*~

Nii was jarred from a deep sleep by the train whistle. He opened his eyes into darkness and found himself quite cold and alone. His storm cloud of a foul mood had descended once more. Rather than attempt to seek out Koumyou again (he had no doubt the man would find him again), he poured himself a bath and changed into new clothes. No expense had been spared for this ruse, as the suspenders, trousers and shirts were all perfectly his size, not meant for Koumyou's taller, broader-shouldered frame. They were well-made, too.

Nii was glad for his steadiness of hand as he carefully shaved, recalling Koumyou's complaints about his stubble. It was a fun little game, making sure he didn't slit his own throat when the car gave an unexpected lurch. It'd have been more fun to try not to kill someone else, though. There were times Nii missed the blood of his surgery days, the filthy, nauseating smell and being deep in someone's flesh, and the wave of satisfaction at having pulled off the impossible. It wasn't so different from the stage, only people's lives were at stake.

(Thinking of it that way, perhaps these high-risk escape acts had something after all.)

Nii rubbed fingertips over his cheek and thought of Genjyo's story of his father's death. Koumyou's elegant face would show a calm sort of determination, throwing himself between the old man being beaten. But then, what fear and shock when those sharp claws tore the silk of his robes to ribbons, entered resisting flesh to turn all those soft, cool colors into red and red and red like ink bleeding into a charcoal sketch.

The ragged flesh and blood would splatter to the ground a handful of rose petals. The mental image awakened creativity and arousal in him. Smiling to himself, Nii doodled a few ideas on a napkin, had a quick wank, then left for the dining car. Last he saw, Gonou spent most his time there, and it was about time he caught up to the young man.

The dining car was opulent as the rest of the train. There was an open bar in one corner, connected to a kitchen, made of finely-polished wood and decorated with a mirror and rows of crystal glasses that made tinkly, hollow music to accompany the vibration of the engines. Only two others disturbed the eerie chimes of perilously-placed glasses - Gonou and a redhead in a bartender's uniform sat quietly, laying playing cards onto the white linen table cloth.

Gonou's laugh rose above the noise of the train: an utterly foreign sound to Nii. He couldn't see the assistant's expression, but his polite, amused voice nearly sounded like another person's. Something more than the numbed, detached politeness Nii had come to associate with him. Gonou sounded happy. "Ah, sorry. Straight flush."

"Again?" The barkeep spoke around his dangling cigarette. "Gol-dang, sure you ain't a gambler?"

"Not in the way you'd think, ahaha."

Gonou's whole body shook with the effort of containing his warm laughter. Nii could barely contain his disgust. If Gonou became just like every other young man, he'd probably start having ambitions and all sorts of other nonsense. He'd become boring. Nii took one of the chairs and sat on it backward, invading the space Gonou created with the redhead.

"This the boss-man?" The bartender's eyes were also red, and he sported quite an interesting scar beneath one eye, two smooth, deep cuts. Something about the young man seemed familiar. Nii wondered which side Red fought for in the war - half-youkai were the ugly ducklings of the world, not wanted by either human or youkai society. Like the gold-eyed porter, trains like these were some of the few well-paying jobs Red could get. Probably one he couldn't afford to lose, either.

"That'd be me," Nii grinned. "Just imagine, you can tell everyone you fixed Master Illusionist Nii Jyiani a fancy gin cocktail. Now hop to it!"

Nii could barely contain his glee as Red rolled his eyes and slid from his chair. Gonou's face fell.

"How about a smile with the service, boy?" Nii called over his shoulder, watching as Red mixed the genever, curaçao, syrup and bitters with ice. He paused in his chore to give Nii a grin around his cigarette, accompanied by an upraised middle finger. Gonou could barely contain his laughter.

"Don't be like that, I won't give you a tip," Nii said, full of put-upon sweetness.

"I'll tell ya where you can shove your tips," Red shot back.

Nii turned back to Gonou, snickering. "So this is where you've been wasting all your time?"

"Yes." All Gonou's emotive color drained from his face when he looked upon Nii. "Did you miss me?" Dry irony tugged at the corner of Gonou's lips, nearly resembling a smile.

"Not really." Nii patted himself down, felt the letter and then what he was looking for - his cigarettes. He lit one up even though Gonou crinkled his nose. He always did. "Things have been getting interesting for me here."

"Like the curse?"

"May you live in interesting times," Nii nodded.

"Here's your drink, sir." Red set out a doily and placed Nii's fancy gin on it with practiced care. Contrary to his airs, he was good at his job. "Hey, Hakkai, d'you want anything?"

"More tea, if you're up, please," Gonou replied.

"Sure thing."

Nii didn't bother watching Red disappear into the kitchen. Instead he stared at Gonou, who was still looking happy, almost luminous. There was more color in those pale cheeks than Nii had ever seen, even when he wore rouge. He was alive now. "Who's Hakkai?" Nii snorted.

Gonou went cool and brusque as he always was with Nii. "I'm thinking of going by that from now on. To signify starting over."

"Don't want to be known as a murderous circus freak for the rest of your life? Can't say I blame you." Nii leaned back, stretching his legs out beneath the table. He inhaled smoke deep and slow. He thought of names and of changes. Nii changed his name after the war, Koumyou changed his name to fake his death, and now Gonou wanted to call himself Hakkai. Wasn't that just like breaking rotten eggs into a hat and expecting cleansing flames to arise? The truth was, the whole change was just one more illusion. Bad things couldn't be transmuted into good. People were the same no matter what they looked like.

Gonou went quiet. Didn't say a word more until Red brought the tea, and then all his attention went to sipping it. Red made himself scarce polishing glasses.

"I'm starting over," Gonou said in that careful way he always used to address Nii, like he needed time to chew each syllable. "I'm resigning as your assistant. There's a cook's position open on the train and Gojyo - the bartender - has signed me onto the crew. He's assured me it will be fine to use his bunk until I have one of my own, so you needn't concern myself with seeing me. I'll be starting tomorrow."

"You'd rather be a cook on a crew of lowlifes than my assistant?" Nii laughed. Couldn't do anything but laugh. "Just when the act is really going places, you'd rather be bunk mates with some bummer?"

"I don't mean to sound ungrateful," Gonou - Hakkai - said quietly. "But you and I both know that I'm not all that important to the act, and more than anything, I just want to lead a peaceful life. Consider this me releasing you from my obligation."

Nii glanced back at Gojyo. The half-youkai was still polishing glasses. There was a sort of savage beauty about him, and a misfit quality not found in typical youkai. Not bad, he thought, but worth giving up a career in illusions? Nii wondered if he'd been wrong about his green-eyed assistant all these years. Maybe the reason the kid only ever seemed to have eyes for his sister was because he preferred men. Too bad he hadn't used that to his advantage. Maybe he wouldn't be out an assistant now.

"Was that Hakkai name his idea too?" A name referring to sin didn't seem like Gojyo's style, from what little Nii knew about him.

"No," said Hakkai. "That was another friend of mine."

"Since when do you have friends?"

Hakkai raised his cup to his lips but did not sip for a moment. Nii could see why he was so good at cards, calculating as he was. "More surprising things have happened," he said after a moment, and then drank. "Didn't you say you were living in interesting times?"

"True," Nii said. "You're missing out."

"Aha ha ha. I'm sure I am."

Nii lifted his nearly-forgotten cocktail in a mock-toast to Hakkai.

The drink was surprisingly good.

~*~

Koumyou didn't return to the luxury box until two days later. By that time, Nii had done a thorough search of the train and could only conclude Koumyou spent all his time in the crew quarters or in another luxury box. Frustrated and petulant, Nii spent that whole day in the dining car torturing Gojyo by ordering him around and amusing pretty ladies with card tricks. In the early evening, Hakkai drove him out, emerging from the kitchen wearing an apron and a smile over his usual things. He explained how it was easily possible for a man to read a woman's mind in two or three different ways: by watching her eyes, by cutting cards a certain way, by having a limited number of options. Now, what would the ladies like for supper?

Nii slammed the door of the luxury box upon returning. Koumyou, dressed in a chang pao of light gold, sat on the edge of the bed, one leg crossed over the other.

"Where have you been? I've been mad with boredom without you!" Nii sat down next to Koumyou.

"I'm responsible for your amusement? No one told me."

"You're the reason I'm stuck on this train for all this extra time, so yes, I'd consider you responsible." But Nii's fowl temper was cooling in the light of Koumyou's smile. He rested his chin on Koumyou's shoulder.

"I'm responsible for that too?" Koumyou scratched his chin pensively. "I had no idea."

"Let's lie next to each other again," Nii said, nibbling Koumyou's ear. "Or on top of each other. Whatever you like. Let's make love."

"I'll let you lie on top of me tonight," Koumyou said. Nii caught a glint of enticing hazel eyes beneath his lashes, behind his smile.

"Yes!" Nii breathed. He gathered the older man in his arms and kissed him deeply, swathing his tongue across his lips, overeager as if he were but a lad again. Koumyou took hold of his shoulders and pushed him back, wagging a finger in his face.

"Ah-ah-ah! That's not how we do it. I need a pair of scissors."

Dumbfounded, Nii produced a pair from the shave kit in the bathroom, but the blades were far too dull. Instead, Koumyou took the straight razor and sawed his braid right off. Nii's mouth went dry as the thick rope of ash blond and gray fell to the thick green carpet with a muted thud. It lay dead as an amputated limb, but Koumyou stepped over it instead of staggering away. He sat down on the bed and drew a large white scarf from his sleeve. Koumyou picked up his braid, cutting the smooth tresses into smaller tufts and stuffing them into the cloth. After a short period of this, Nii realized Koumyou was stuffing a pillow. He'd heard of separated lovers performing such bizarre rituals, but he was still reeling at Koumyou's much-shorter hair to much consider the implications. He was little more than a stunned spectator as Koumyou filled the pillow. When he was through with that, he neatened his now chin-length hair in front of the mirror in Nii's commode and threw the scraps into the pillow as well. His flourish-free finale was to draw a needle and thread from inside the pillow, and sew it up.

"Tah-dah!"

It was the softest thing Nii ever held, weighty yet soft and airy as a cloud. It smelled strongly of Koumyou and his pipe tobacco, his almond oil soap. Nii hugged it instinctively. As a child, he favored soft toys, though they were inappropriate for boys after a certain age. The pillow seemed a gift from a simpler time.

"Now you can lie on top of me," Koumyou explained, his eyes twinkling. Nii couldn't decide whether he wanted to slap or kiss him. He grabbed him by the collar, deciding on the latter only on the last moment. He bit Koumyou's lip before withdrawing. Koumyou had that offended pigeon look again, rubbing the blood across his lower lip.

Nii smelled blood and felt his arousal rising. "If you keep up this teasing, I don't know what I'll do. I'll go mad as a loon. I'll ravish you. Or maybe kill you."

"Throw me onto the train tracks, right? I was thinking it might be more effective if you threw me off the front, rather than the back. Then I'd get all caught up in the wheels." Koumyou laughed.

The arousal melted into nausea as Nii imagined Koumyou throwing himself off the train willingly. He sat down on the bed. Koumyou ran his long fingers through his messy dark hair, soothing him. He kissed Nii, slow and gentle, no teeth or tongue at all.

"You're free to do whatever you want with me," Koumyou said. "But, keep this in mind. You're committed to that performance in Houtou. You no longer have an assistant. You're expected to do an escape artists' act, and you know nothing about it. I can help with these two problems."

"I never said I'd do the show," Nii murmured, far too assuaged by Koumyou's kisses, which now mapped his jaw and throat. "I told your son I had no interest and I deal in illusions, not escapes."

"My son?"

"Mouthy sonnovabitch, that one. Nothing like you." Nii purred as Koumyou unbuttoned his collar, showering the triangle of exposed skin with kisses.

"We all have our personality problems," Koumyou murmured. "You'll go, won't you? And I'll be your beloved assistant, a clueless newcomer."

"The dowager won't recognize you?" Nii ran his fingers through Koumyou's newly-clipped hair. It seemed softer like this, fashioned into such a short, boy-like cut. With enough make up, the spry middle-aged man would probably pass for Nii's age, or even younger.

"Gyumaoh's widow? It's as I said, I just didn't have that flare and flash the woman desired." Koumyou bit Nii and suckled a spot on Nii's jugular.

Nii curled his fingers around Koumyou's neck. "Koumyou..."

"Soma," Koumyou said.

"Soma," Nii repeated, squeezing his fingers tight around his neck. "I'm going to take you. I have to take you."

"How sweet," Koumyou said, and palmed Nii through his pants, curling fingers along the half-hard length. While Nii was distracted, Koumyou broke free of his grasp and drew a blue scarf from his sleeve, using it as a blindfold again. Nii laughed wickedly at the games he was certain were soon to begin. But Koumyou had only a precious few more kisses for him. He placed several to his neck while he tied Nii's hands behind his back with thick, rough rope he'd hidden beneath the bed. He tied Nii's ankles together in a similar fashion.

"I'll be back in a half hour to check on your progress," Koumyou laughed. Nii could hear his amused smile. "I'll bring you a little tea and some vegetables."

Nii couldn't stop laughing. He lay back on the bed, rolling around, blindfolded, bound, and giggling. "I think I've decided. I'll definitely kill you."

"You'll have to get free," said Koumyou reasonably, and made his exit.

~*~

The remaining days of the journey cooled Nii's desire to kill Koumyou somewhat. Most of his energy was focused instead on learning a few new tricks, how to get out of ropes, even dislocating his shoulder to free himself from chains and straight jackets. Koumyou and Nii took their meals together in the luxury box, but the only way Koumyou slept with Nii was beneath his head at night. t Ijust seemed to drive Nii's focus all the harder, bringing vanilla-scented dreams of a laughing lover who disappeared just as he got close enough to touch.

The train arrived on a dank day, the flies buzzing and the cicadas beating out their hollow cries through the jungle. Standing on the platform, Nii surveyed palm trees and the big, white mansion on a hill in the distance. He thought of Koumyou, now Soma, and Gonou, now Hakkai. He thought of how his own name was once Ken'yuu. At night, with that strange, silky pillow against his cheek, he sometimes wondered at taking on yet another new name, as if lives were as easy to wiggle out of as rigged handcuffs.

As if to spite the swelter, the Widow Gyumaoh arrived to greet him in a high-collared gown with the most outrageous bustle Nii had seen since his society days. The peachy-orange of her dress was a poor match for her smoky purple hair, its shade a vulgar competition for the foliage around her. Nii heard only every other word she spoke as her attendants took his bags and she led him to a carriage. Genjyo Sanzo had secured quite an interesting guest indeed, and she was so very pleased, she was having a special dinner thrown in his honor. Her name was Gyokumen and he should very much feel free to call her that. Though Gyokumen was unusual, a youkai woman living a life of human opulence, complete with her own entourage of youkai servants, she bored Nii so much he found it insulting. Her words were too numerous, her clothing too elaborate. Koumyou's were better, loose, light and not confining.

Modesty was a concept Nii never found alluring until Koumyou. Now he favored the mystery. The exposure of Koumyou's milk-pale neck, his willowy fingers that often hid beneath his sleeves, all awakened a schoolboy-like excitement in Nii, the likes of which he'd never experienced from any man or woman. He thought of Koumyou's lips against his neck, staring out the window of the carriage, barely paying attention to Gyokumen's chatter.

Nii's appearance always advertised his true intention: today, in a ditto suit and bowler, he was trying to impress Gyokumen, but not much. He'd shaved but not cut his hair. His gaze barely lingered at her exaggerated form, the cinched waist, the chin that lifted by the necessity of a lace collar, the ridiculous curve that both accentuated and hid her backside. For some time, he watched her lips carefully form each word. Though lip and cheek rouge had gone out of fashion for the proper women, it seemed Gyokumen still painted her lips blood red. They were a flawless shape, and her fangs seemed quite sharp against the movements of her tongue. The effect was a dramatic one. She was a hungry, scheming beast, and she smiled when she caught Nii looking.

Nii smiled back. "So which birthday is it you're celebrating?"

"You mustn't ask a lady to reveal such things about her age."

"I had no idea such concepts bothered youkai."

"I assure you, there are those of us who believe there's a place for youkai and humans to get along. And a few social graces never hurt anyone." Gyokumen's voice was like petting a cat with new kid gloves. Every now and then, a spark flew from a wrong rub, but usually it was cool, soft and lovely.

"I think there are boys who died in the war who might disagree," Nii laughed.

"Are you filled with such unpleasant thoughts? You're supposed to be here to entertain me. Pull a rabbit from your hat."

"If you want something fun to play with, I'm sure I could make some kind of arrangement," Nii leered. Gyokumen could probably keep his bed warm and remain amusing for at least fortnight, but he did not lean any close to the woman even when she drew closer. Nii did not know why he should hold back the instinct, it wasn't as if Koumyou had laid any claim to him. In fact, Koumyou likely wouldn't comment or even care. So why shouldn't he see exactly what kind of marks those sharp claws of hers could make down his back?

_I've never felt as if I wanted to listen to someone._

Would Nii wait forever for words that were never spoken? Would he wait up for a thousand nights waiting to lay side-by-side for the man who now locked his handcuffs but never entered his bed?

Nii produced a rare youkai coin from Gyokumen's ear. Silver, with the face of the Dragon of the Western Sea on it. Gyokumen raised an inky brow when Nii pressed it to her palm.

"That's about the going price for a woman of your caliber, right?" he said.

Gyokumen was furious by the time they arrived to the estate. She could not cancel Nii after having boasted to her friends he'd perform at her private birthday, so it would behoove her not to return his insult. On the other hand, she was every bit as prideful as the magician, and Nii half-expected the woman to tear from the carriage hissing and spitting as she stomped to the gate without the help of her attendants.

The mansion stood out like a wedding cake displayed on a green tablecloth, all wrought iron and curling buttresses, far too lovely for its vulgar mistress or the mud-smelling jungle around it. Nii saw that it was not the gate itself that offended Gyokumen so, but rather a tow-headed young woman on a bicycle. She was youkai, dusky-skinned, but Nii saw her face was a similar shape to Gyokumen's. No wonder Gyokumen wished to conceal her age, if she was old enough for a teenage daughter. Even from a distance, Nii could see a youthful energy exuded the girl that Gyokumen utterly lacked. She was also more modern, dressed in bloomers for riding. It brought to mind Koumyou and his morose son. Koumyou's behavior gave the illusion of youth, and made Nii more lively through being near it. Gyokumen, on the other hand, was heavy, pushing all the light from the windows away from her and attempting to drain it from her daughter.

"Lirin! How many times have I told you not to let men see you on that infernal contraption! And in those clothes!" Each complaint was marked with a sharp slap to the girl's shoulder. "Get inside and dress yourself properly to greet Mr. Nii!"

"Yes mother!"

The footmen opened the gates, and Gyokumen sighed heavily, attempting to pin her smoky hair back into place. "Forgive my daughter," said Gyokumen. "She's never known life outside this town, and her father and step-brother spoiled her."

"I assure you, milady, what I saw did not reflect poorly on her," Nii said, rolling his eyes.

Gyokumen either missed it or ignored him. "I suppose part of it is my fault. I've been too lenient."

It seemed people never changed anywhere, youkai or human. Nii had a sudden vision of a life far behind him: a velveteen rabbit tossed in the rubbish bin with the ashes. _You're really too old, Ken'yuu, I had the nursemaid throw it out._

Nii didn't know whether he was pleased or annoyed he'd resolved not to play with Gyokumen. It didn't really matter. As Gyokumen led him through the grand front door, he saw Koumyou's face smiling at him from a window high above, and he was sure his night would be otherwise occupied.

Gyokumen held a welcome banquet in Nii's honor that evening. Though she had the doors of the dining hall opened out to a spectacular view of the jungle at sunset, the exotic locale did nothing to combat the dreariness of the company. Lirin squirmed, clearly not used to wearing a corset and sitting still for such long periods of time. Knowing she'd been a fan of Koumyou's, and also that it would make Gyokumen angry, Nii attempted to engage her.

"I've never seen someone master a bicycle like that on such rough terrain."

"Big Brother taught me to ride when I was really little!"

"Don't bore our guest," Gyokumen interrupted.

"I'll let you know when I'm bored," Nii replied through the teeth of his grin. He made a deliberate study of Lirin. She had a youkai clan marking visible on her cheek, deep red, three stripes a little like a the claw mark from a great cat. Nii assumed it must be the mark of Gyumaoh, but paired with her sand-colored skin, it bore a striking resemblance to someone he hadn't seen since the circus. They always joked that the lion tamer once fell afoul of a cub and received the mark.

Kougaiji and his friends never seemed too fond of Nii, coming just short of openly despising him. They certainly hadn't bothered to see him off. Nii could barely remember the last time he spoke even a pleasant hello to Kougaiji.

Still, to find his sister half across the world was quite a coincidence, especially since he was performing for the young man's stepmother. It was type of coincidence that would probably be followed by several more, the type of coincidence that had followed him this entire trip.

As the youkai servants set out the plates, they barely glanced at Nii and didn't even murmur the typical courtesies. Nii didn't care enough to be affronted, but he did find the role reversal amusing. Gyokumen might claim to believe in social graces, but he knew when he was being given the cold shoulder. This was youkai territory, and they were trying to throw him off-balance as a show of strength.

"I apologize to milady," said the head butler as they brought out the main course. "The new cook said he didn't know our guest was human. It may be spiced a bit too strongly for him."

The chicken was slathered so thickly in spices it was hardly recognizable. Nii's eyes watered as he ate a bite. After that, he went to great lengths to hide his food in his napkin, making a great show at how delicious it was. He imagined Koumyou feeding him a small bowl of steamed vegetables and rice, piece by piece, with chopsticks, and was able to fool everyone present into believing he'd eaten the whole meal.

Lirin, on the other hand, pushed her plate aside and said, "Blech!" Without asking to be excused, she left. "I'd rather go hungry than eat more of that! It's way too hot and salty! I'm gonna see if the cook has some of those dumplings."

Gyokumen didn't finish her meal either. She scolded the servants for bringing out portions so unsuitable for delicate women.

"If you'll excuse me," Nii broke in, "I'm quite tired from the road. I'll have to take the tour next time."

"How sad," Gyokumen said. She tapped her long nails over the table cloth, and watched him walk up the stairs.

Nii was expecting the room to be empty, and it was, save his birds and rabbits. They seemed surprisingly calm and content. Then again, Nii could at least keep his animals happy. Like an audience, he knew how to gain their trust.

The space was a welcome change from the cramped interior of the train, though the furnishings weren't as sophisticated. The bed was large enough for three grown men (and what a shame it seemed Koumyou's son wasn't amicable), lightly dressed with fine linen. Outside, the mosquitoes had joined the persistent whine of life in the dying twilight.

In the center of the bed sat a single pillow different from the others, lumpy and uneven. Nii picked up Koumyou's pillow and held it tightly. He recalled Koumyou's face in the window, and wondered if the fall was far enough to kill him, should someone be behind him to push.

Nii's daydream was broken by a soft knock on the door. His mind fought to talk his heart of elation, after all, it couldn't be Koumyou. The man hadn't properly announced himself since the moment they met. As usual, his mind was correct: it was Gyokumen, dressed in nothing but a simple white shift. She was nothing but dangerous looks, her red lips drawn like a bow ready to fire her pointed tongue.

"The night's still young," she said. Nii made no secret of the study he made of her body, the darkness of her nipples visible through the light fabric of her shift. He took a step back from the door, but held up a hand to stop her from following.

"The night is still young," he said, cracking a manic grin. "But you're not. And I'm not _that_ bored tonight."

Nii closed the door and fell back on the bed. He held Koumyou's pillow close to his chest and laughed, long and hard.

~*~

Houtou Mansion's parlor was equipped with a grand little stage, about three and a half feet from the ground, with a set of flood lights and a few other useful apparatuses like a deep trap door and long mirrors. It had its own little set of curtains, gold and silver with the most charming silk fringe, and looked out onto rows of high-backed chairs on an inclined floor. It was on this stage that Koumyou finally re-appeared to Nii, the day before the party. He was almost startlingly normal in a blue flannel jacket with shiny brass buttons and a flat-topped straw hat. He did a spin around the center stage, arms outstretched. "Ah, it's lovely, isn't it? Just as I designed it all those years ago."

"You said you mostly performed for Lirin," Nii said from where he stood on a ladder adjusting the spotlight in the back of the room. He was not looking nearly as cheerful or dapper, sweaty from the exertion of setting out all his things without the help of other circus workers, stage hands or an assistant. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up high, his suspenders hanging round his hips.

"You really do listen," Koumyou praised him, then spoke lightly. "Shall we do a dress rehearsal?"

"Yes," said Nii, hopping off the ladder and crossing the room in a few confident strides. He stood directly in front of the older man and kissed him. The trap door beneath them fell open, and they plunged into the profound darkness of a tiny, enclosed space - just as Nii planned. It was not really enough space for them to stand comfortably, smaller than a broom closet. Koumyou had no choice but to press against Nii just to get even footing, straddling Nii's leg. Nii kissed Koumyou again, coaxing his lips open. In the partial dark of their hidden compartment, they relearned one another's mouths, as if it had been a lifetime since they'd last met. When Koumyou finally broke free, he laughed against Nii's collar. "The door is behind you," he said breathlessly. "I can't get free like this."

"Why would you want to be free?" Nii laughed, sliding his thigh between Koumyou's legs. They were both damp from the heat by now, the heat of their breath collecting on the sides of the painted-black box. Nii kissed Koumyou's neck, so much easier to access with his newly-short hair.

Though the handle of the door dug into the small of his back, Nii was in no hurry to leave. Instead, he pushed his leg between Koumyou's again, rubbing slow. He couldn't do more with his hands, caught and pinned around Koumyou as they were, but Koumyou soon responded to his subtle movements. They were kissing again, tangled.

"I want to do this during the show," Nii whispered. "While everyone is waiting. They'll wonder where we disappeared to."

"Were you always such a naughty young man?" Koumyou teased. He was just as hard as Nii was, and they were frotting through their clothes in earnest now, with whatever tiny movements they could manage.

"Tell me the truth," Nii rasped. He was beginning to regret his choice of venue, but he'd needed this: an enclosure, some way Koumyou couldn't disappear from him, elude him. But he wanted inside Koumyou, wanted more than his mouth and the awkward friction of their clothes, and he couldn't have it here, but he couldn't stop, either. "Why did you fake your death and send your son to me? Why did you come to me under false pretense? How did you know my assistant had quit? Why is Kougaiji's sister here?"

"If you wanted the truth, you shouldn't have become a magician," Koumyou said through gritted teeth. The friction of their movements was desperate, but painful too. "Damn it, Nii, I can't - I can't finish like this!"

Unable to contain his urges, Nii opened the door behind them. It shut without a sound once they stumbled through, trapping them in total darkness. They fell onto one another in the narrow hallway beneath the stage, and surrendered to one another as perfectly as if they'd planned it. They panted and unbuttoned and never stopped kissing. Nii pressed Koumyou against a wall, spat in his hand and finished them both. Koumyou screamed silently into Nii's mouth, then fell into his arms, limp and helpless. It took a few moments for both to gather themselves, giddy as if they'd shared a private joke. Maybe they had.

"Did I kill you?" Nii whispered into his ear. Koumyou just laughed and kissed him.

"I'd have to be alive for you to kill me."

"So you're a ghost?"

Koumyou lifted his gaze, and pulled Nii's spectacles from his face. Hazel eyes met dark, dark brown.

"Maybe. Something like that."

Nii smoothed his hands over Koumyou's chest. He felt a small lump, an irregularity, and slipped his hand into the breast pocket of Koumyou's jacket. It was a locket made of some heavy stone, cool in his palm. He could feel the grooves of the locket's hinge, the small detail in the center of one, a loop on top missing a chain. Nii knew if he were able to see its contents, it would contain a picture of him as a schoolboy, back when he had another name and another life.

"We're both ghosts," Koumyou said, sounding both fond and sad. He touched Nii's lips. "Invisible."

"But I see you," Nii said to total darkness.

~*~

At precisely 7:24PM the next evening, the silver and gold curtains of Houtou Mansion's little stage drew back, revealing the greatest illusionist of his time, Nii Jyianyi. He wore his finest black suit, the ones with tails, with a red vest beneath and his white collar high and stiff. With his bright white gloves, his shiny top hat and equally shining grin, the audience could do little more than love him. Nii observed the audience as they crept further and further into his world of magic and illusions, like flies hopelessly attracted to a pitcher plant. They knew what they would find would offer no substance, but they did not mind, no, instead they sought it. Truly, they were no different than the farmers and working class fools he'd played for at the circus. Their laughs may have been quieter, their claps more reserved, but their cow-eyed awe at the orange tree finale was just as mind-numbingly dull as it was back home.

As Nii listened to them call for an encore, he looked to his fair-haired assistant. Koumyou smiled behind his black half-mask. He'd brought out the straitjacket and handcuffs. Nii nodded, and a servant pulled the curtains back again.

"I heard the lady of the house likes escape arts. For my truly final act of this evening, I'll escape from this straitjacket, these handcuffs... and this set of chains."

Nii thought he saw a figure with dark hair moving through the crowd. It was probably a servant, judging by the clothes. He didn't let the movement distract him. He knew his smile was getting bigger and toothier with the addition of each new weight, each new obstacle. He knew it would take less than 30 seconds to get free. He was not worried. Gyokumen looked on with interest, as did Lirin. But it was Koumyou that Nii focused on, his stillness and his hands clasped behind his back, the slight upward turn of his mouth, visible from beneath his mask.

Nii turned his back to the crowd to work himself free of the final details. As the handcuffs fell to the stage with a jangling clunk, Nii turned, expecting a tide of applause. Instead, he was treated to a pale and outraged Gyokumen, standing up in her seat, her eyes like fire.

"Lirin! Where is Lirin? Where did that girl disappear to?! Someone turn on the lights! She's run away again!"

Within moments, the whole household mobilized to search for the girl. Nii had an alibi by being on stage, but they searched the hidden compartment, rooted through the props, and thoroughly upset his doves and rabbits. Lirin wasn't the only one who turned up missing. The new cook and stable boys were gone, too. Nii was not surprised to hear the cook had green eyes, or that the stable boys looked youkai.

More important to Nii was his vanished assistant. Everyone claimed to have seen Soma up till the moment Gyokumen halted the show. Yet no trace of him remained, not even a hair for Nii to tie around his wrist. Though Nii wasn't sure what part his assistant played, Gyokumen blamed him and sent him from the house.

The train station wouldn't be open to buy tickets until morning, so Nii dragged all his things, as well as his animals, to a local inn. The innkeeper let him leave his animals in the stable and escorted Nii to his room. Before retiring, Nii took a bath. He held his breath and sunk deep beneath the water, imagining the weight of the chains keeping him there, threatening a watery grave. Drowning was an attractive way to die, at least until the body started sponging up fluid. Nii wasn't vain, but he thought it might be nice to leave a beautiful corpse. He broke the surface only when his lungs were burning, threatening, and his body could not take another moment. Nii was still a little dizzy as he returned to his simply furnished room, yet he felt that nearly drowning had somehow cleared his head a bit.

Koumyou lay stretched out on the bed in a red chang pao, reading a book by lamplight. He didn't even look as Nii sat down, nor when Nii crawled over him to kiss the nape of his neck.

"How did your son do, then, Koumyou?" Nii asked him. "Did he pull everything off all right?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Koumyou said, scratching his cheek. "Have you ever read this book? It's called the _Tao Te Ching_."

"I think I read it in school." This time, Nii kissed Koumyou's shoulder blade through the silk of his robe. Koumyou rolled onto his back, and put his arms around Nii.

"The show is over, now. You can lie on top of me. Or kill me. Whatever it is you want."

Nii kissed Koumyou, slow and lingeringly. "I should ask you to un-hypnotize me."

"I could only do that if I'd actually hypnotized you."

"Didn't you?" Nii pulled the onyx locket from the pocket of his suit jacket and placed it in Koumyou's hand. Koumyou had slipped it to him during the course of the show that night.

Koumyou smiled and kissed Nii below his left eye. "Maybe a little. But only as much as you hypnotized me."

After one more kiss, Nii stretched out beside Koumyou on the bed and squeezed their hands together. Something odd had occurred to him when Gyokumen offered herself not long ago. He could have empty relations every night for the rest of his life, however he pleased, with almost anyone he wanted. Gyokumen would have been a fine enough diversion in spite of her disgusting personality. But Nii came to realize that what he wanted most was not what he fantasized about, nor what was offered most freely or easily obtained. Those things were illusions, cold comforts compared to the warmth of a simple and quiet companion. That night, after turning Gyokumen away, he realized he genuinely wanted nothing more than to just lie beside Koumyou, staring at the shadows on the ceiling, drifting in and out of sleep. Words and release weren't necessary.

"...You didn't have to fake your own death just to find out if I'd want you out of context," Nii said.

"No," Koumyou said with a yawn. "But it was fun, wasn't it?"

"It _was_ fun."

Far in the distance, a train whistled.

"Tomorrow, we'll head back to the big city," Nii said.

"Do we have to take the train?" Koumyou's question held a note of complaint.

"I promise I won't throw you from it," Nii assured him.

"How sweet." Koumyou lifted their hands, kissing the back of Nii's. "I should warn you, I'm not making that kind of promise."

"So you're going to kill me?" All of Nii's skin tingled with the idea of it. "Do you promise to do it if I get too bored?"

Koumyou's answer was immediate. "No, absolutely not!" he laughed.

"Why not?" Nii pouted a little.

"Because you'll never be too bored."

Nii shook his head then sat up to kiss Koumyou's temple. After a little shifting around, they crawled beneath the covers, spooning. Lulled by the rhythm of Koumyou's breathing, Nii felt into a deep and dreamless sleep. He didn't find it the least bit boring.

 

~EPILOGUE~

On a train from Houtou to Chang'an, three men sat around the table in the dining car. A sullen blond, a redhaired bartender, and a dark-haired cook. They were joined by a gold-eyed young man in a white uniform, who laid a newspaper out between them.

"They're in it again, Sanzo," said the porter, skimming the article. "_The feat was a successes, but naysayers think his assistant may have brought him the key in a glass of water - or a kiss._"

"It's good to see they're doing well," Hakkai tittered, smiling into his tea.

"I thought you hated that guy," Gojyo pointed out.

"Well, at least it's good to see Sanzo's father doing well. He sounds rather happy, don't you think?"

Genjyo glowered and snatched the paper to hide behind.

"Don't make me sick."


End file.
